This invention relates to apparatus for handling janitorial cleaning supplies. More particularly, it concerns a rack-like caddy for retaining an assortment of cleaning supplies in a manner so that the supplies may be suspended from a trash dolly, for example, or manually carried in the caddy which is capable of standing erect on a floor or other horizontal surface.
In the daily cleaning of office and other commercial buildings, it is common practice for janitorial personnel to be equipped with a trash dolly and an assortment of supplies such as cleaning fluids, rags, sponges, trash basket liners, and the like, so that trash collection and cleaning services in a given area or office may be accomplished with required supplies at hand. Trash dollies used in this work are relatively large and are mounted on caster wheels to facilitate maneuverability of the dollies through doors and around furniture to the various locations of small trash receptacles or waste baskets to be emptied into the trash dolly during the daily cleaning operation. The size and the wheeled character of the trash dollies enables them to serve also in the manner of a cart to support and carry the various supplies allocated to each cleaning person or work crew. In the absence of any other specific provision, for example, it is common practice for the cleaning supplies to be placed in the dolly or in a bag which is, in turn, tied or otherwise fixed to the trash dolly. Alternatively, the dolly may be fitted with a tray or an appurtenance designed for the support of cleaning supplies in the dolly.
With existing equipment and practices, at least two major problems are presented to janitorial contractors or others charged with responsibility for cost-effective office cleaning services. The first of these problems involves the inefficient handling of janitorial supplies which are moved from area to area by attachment to a trash dolly whether by design or by custom. Where individual cleaning compositions or implements are removed from the trash dolly for use, a measure of inefficiency results from multiple trips between the point of use and the trash dolly. In addition, various components of the cleaning supplies removed from the trash dolly are often left in the area being cleaned thereby reducing cost effectiveness and providing a source of irritation to the occupants of the space being cleaned.
The second and perhaps more significant problem resulting from support of cleaning supplies on trash dollies is that substantial losses of janitorial supplies are incurred as a result of the supplies being dumped simultaneously with emptying the trash dolly into a larger repository for the trash. The large number of such incidents resulting solely from the practice of supporting cleaning supplies on trash dollies accumulates to a major item of waste and expense to the servicing of a large office building, not to mention the industry as a whole.
Accordingly, there is a need for improvement in apparatus for handling cleaning fluids and other supplies in the performance of janitorial services of the type represented by daily maintenance of large office and other commercial buildings.